HFDU - Holiday Edition

Originally sent: January 7, 2004

Greetings everyone! I hope that this email finds you all well rested from the holidays and ringing in the New Year with good health and happiness! I know I just sent an HFDU out just before the break, but I have time at the moment to talk about my holiday travels so I decided to do it now rather than later when I get busy with work. So, here goes......

I spent Christmas in Sorrento, a small beachside community near where the bay (where Melbourne is located) meets the ocean. It's a phenomenal place, with water so clear that you can see all the way to the bottom perfectly! I have never been one to be too adventurous in the water because of sea creatures and the like, so this was refreshing for me because I was able to know what I was getting myself in to! There were around 15 people in a rented beach house, and most of us were company employees from other countries. At Christmas dinner (which was a huge feast by the way) we had 8 countries represented, and no one from Australia: Germans, Swiss, French, Scots, Kiwis (New Zealanders), English, American, and South African. A great combination, and we had a great time!

I spent most of Christmas Day on a boat enjoying the sun and watching the guys wakeboard. Very relaxing and totally not how I am used to spending Christmas. I was a bit homesick in the morning when I woke up to no Christmas tree, no stocking, and no presents (I had opened them all ahead of time!), but once everyone got up we put Christmas music on and had brekkie, and I felt much more in the spirit of Christmas! On Boxing Day (Dec 26th) we spent the day hiking (bushwalking) in the Mornington Peninsula National Park, which is the piece of land that actually "separates" the bay and the ocean. It was beautiful, and we walked along the beach just before high tide, so there wasn't a whole lot of beach left & it was a bit of an adventure! I spent the remainder of that day taking a nap in the hammock :-)

After my 4 days in Sorrento, I headed back to Melbourne just to spend the day and then catch the ship to Tasmania for a couple of days. Me and a girlfriend loaded up the car and got on the ship, stupidly without seasick tablets. And yes, we both got sick, but I managed to not throw up. My friend on the other hand was not as lucky! The ship docked in Tasmania about 6:30am (we left at 9pm the previous evening), and we then proceeded to have a very adventurous day! We drove for nearly 2 hours without seeing a soul, because we decided to take a back road more "scenic" route rather than the highway on our way down to Hobart. This left us driving about 40 kilometers on a dirt road (this is supposed to be a highway mind you!), not seeing a petrol station for hours, without our morning coffee for hours, and keep in mind that we were both still not feeling too well from the ship.

Once we made it to Hobart, we discovered that we had a flat tire, but were fortunate to have a nice young man offer to change it for us, followed by his lecture that we should know how to change a flat tire. I told him that I did know how, but that he was much more efficient at it! The rest of our trip in Tasmania was much smoother. We got to see the winning yachts dock from the Sydney to Hobart yacht race, do some small town shopping, and stop at a raspberry farm, cheese farm, and chocolate factory! Yummy! My one observation about Tasmania is that it is absolutely beautiful! I will definitely go back at some point for a proper holiday and stay for much longer.

After I got back from Tasmania, I took the train to a small country Australian town where another friend from work lives. It was nice to have a change of scenery and actually spend time with a family since I have not been around one since I left home 6 months ago! We drove from there down to Lakes Entrance, which is an area along the coast of the Tasman Sea where a whole heap of lakes come together and enter into the sea. It is such a beautiful place, with little waterways and beaches that are only accessible by small boats, so needless to say they are very secluded. B's family has a holiday house in Lakes Entrance and he has promised me that we will spend many weekends down there when he gets back from London. I can't wait :-)

I spent New Year's Eve in the actual town of Lakes Entrance watching the fireworks. After that, we spent the entire next day exploring the town in the daylight, eating the freshest fish & chips and spending some time on the beach. A great couple of days! Then, another girl from the office came out and joined us and we spent a day in a small gold mining town exploring the gold mines and learning about the history of the town. I really had no idea about the complexity of the mines and how deep they went into the earth. I was truly fascinated by it and thoroughly enjoyed the tour. Got some pretty cute pictures with us girls in our hard hats too!

The next day we went down to Wilsons Promontory National Park and went on a beach/bush hike. It was about a 4 hour round trip hike, a bit exhausting, but worth it for the beautiful scenery that we experienced. I also want to spend a good week there as well camping, fishing, hiking, laying on the beaches, etc. I just keep adding to my list of places to go and I only have 16 months left!

I was relieved to get back to Melbourne and continue to get my new apartment settled. It's still unorganized, but I'm getting there slowly. I had a minor disaster on Christmas Eve with a flood from my neighbor's apartment, but that has been resolved. No more trips planned for me for a while, as my busy season with my big client is about to start and I will not have time to go gallivanting around much. I am planning a trip to the Outback at the beginning of June and rumor has it that my parents and a couple of friends may be coming in June/July for visits, so I am definitely looking forward to that!

Sorry for the long, detailed email. Just wanted to share all of the new places that I have been with you. I would really love to see and hear about all of your holidays as well. Thanks to everyone who sent Christmas cards and holiday wishes. It was great to get pieces of home during the holiday season. Take care and I hope to hear from everyone soon!

Best wishes for the New Year!